Week 28: Three Spikes and a Hammer

So I have had this idea for a couple of weeks.   If I remember correctly it came to me during a community group meeting.  Like all ideas that needed props I needed the right ones.  So I began going to flea markets or antique stores looking for just the right things.  I knew I would know when I found the right items.  And sure enough at one particular place I found everything.  When the lady at the counter saw the items she asked what I was going to do with them.  I said, well, I don't know if you believe in God or not.  Oh yes, she said, could not go a day without Him.  Well, I gave her the idea and she said this is perfect for it.  So as I mulled around with layouts and how am I going to do it for the past week, this morning presented the opportunity.  I set about getting all the equipment set up.  This was a three light production with 2 umbrellas with flash, a white sheet and a flash to make the background white and the camera with it's back to the mirrors so I could see a flash of what the picture looked like.  But the picture that I took was more than I could have hoped for.  So a flare showed up just above my head.  This was not by design and it actually accentuated my thinning hair on top of my head.  But the message.  Sometime I take photographs to convey a message and God speaks to me through it.  It reminds me of how we come to God and how when we put our life in His hands He does things that are greater than we can imagine.  Sometimes we don't see it.  But then there are those times we do.  We know.  And we honor Him.  So the pictures:

Amazingly enough, when I did a search of roman hammers I got pretty close.  I could not believe that not only was the hammer in a bin but the spikes were too.  It's how I knew, I just knew God was guiding me to this picture.  And that flare is as if God is behind me, I am forgiven.  It is, for me, a powerful statement from God.

So the message.  I will say what it means to me, you may have an entirely different viewpoint, idea, message.  Interpret it as you see fit.  But for me, it says this.  I am a sinner.  I am.  I have done horrible things in my life.  Any sin, let me repeat, any sin is horrible.  I have not been perfect.  And with just one sin, I helped nail Jesus to that cross.  No, I was not there, but He willingly got up on that cross and died a cruel death by crucifixion so that I had a way into heaven.  He was my sacrifice.  But I must never forget.  I have never watched the Passion on the Christ.  I have a vivid enough of an imagination, and the Bible spells out perfectly clear what happened I do not need a visual reminder of what I helped with.  But this hammer and these three spikes are a representation, a reminder.  But they are good news.  Because death could not hold Him.  He rose 3 days later in glory.  Our God.  My God.  And with that one act He made a way for me to be before God, blameless. 

So you may read this and say, I do not believe in God, or think God is cruel, etc.  I am not here to judge you, I am not here to convince you.  This is my life, my walk, and my story.  It is not my job to convince you, thankfully.  That would be the job of the Holy Spirit.  It is my job, however, to tell you my story and how and what God did for me.  My God is not legalistic.  When I came to God I did not have to do anything but believe His Son died for me and rose from the dead for my sins.  I did not have to clean up, wash up, try to get rid of all my sin in my life.  I just had to come to Him and believe.  It is God who guides me, when I let Him.  I still have a flesh nature and I can still be selfish and do what I want.  But God is patient, and kind.  He has walked me through the Bible and spoken to me.

And these are my favorite kind of photos to take.  People ask me all the time, what do you like taking pictures of the most?  Well, those that are personal.  Those that tell a story.  Those that reach deep down inside of me and touch something sacred and are brought out in a picture.  Those are my favorite pictures to take.

So in this same session as these pictures I wanted to do some for a smoke effect picture I was going to practice on.  So first, Sophie was laying on her perch in my studio so had to take a picture of her with me:

Yes, I have really gotten to love this blue.  Brings out the eyes.  So the before picture:

The after picture:

Just having some fun.  Because even though I can get really heavy and deep into my blog I can also have some fun!

Last but not least, did a pour last week that I fell in love with.  There are some things wrong with it but I will never tell!

For some reason I think of the Grateful Dead lol!

So I hope everyone has a wonderful week.  Thank you everyone who continues to read and support this blog and my photography and art.  Ginger and I are grateful to each of you who prays for us!  We love you and miss you.

Baa